Naruto: Love Of The Stranger
by BabeSuperiour
Summary: He had always wanted to be a mercenary, most kids in the village did. Him and Sasuke dreamed of it, but when the reasons behind the mysterious attack on the Hidden Leaf 15 years ago is revealed to Naruto, he finds that his plans are about to change. Gather the 8 others, bend them to his will, all before his death in 5 years. That shouldn't be too hard. NarutoxIsuca Crossover
1. Wind Beats Lightning

Chapter 1: Wind beats Lightning

* * *

" _Old Man, can you just please tell me what's going on." Came Naruto's plea._

 _However this wasn't one of desperation, Naruto's voice sounded too tired for that._

 _Looking across his desk at the young man, Hiruzen could see the weary look on his face._

 _Letting out a sigh, he prepared for the talk he had been putting off for so long._

" _You know of the attack on our village 15 years ago, correct?" Hiruzen stated more than asked._

 _Taking a seat across from him at the desk, Naruto just nodded._

" _You've probably also heard many explanations throughout your life." Hiruzen stated, eyes closed in remembrance. "But the majority run along the lines of a failed invasion."_

" _However, that's not at all the case." Folding his hands together in front of him, Hiruzen got ready for the hard part._

" _Yes we were attacked, but it was not by another nation." Naruto set his face in a grim line in preparation for the news. "It was by an entity, the one we've simply titled "The Nine Tailed Fox." A massive beast that appeared inside the walls of the village, and proceeded to demolish more than a third of the Hidden Leaf within the 3 minutes it was here."_

' _3 minutes!' Naruto thought in complete shock, he could still see that entire portion of land under repairs right through the window._

" _It is a specter, a monster from the world of the dead, an entity that can't stay long within this realm. In order to stay tied to this plain, they must feast upon the chakra, or life energy, of humans."_

" _So that's why it showed up."_

" _Unfortunately, it doesn't seem that simple." Hiruzen said blowing out a sigh. "You see there are different types of Specter's, varying in amounts of danger. We assign them different classes, like how we assign the difficulty of a mission. The Nine Tailed Fox is an S-class specter, one of 8 others to ever receive that rank."_

" _It seems as if the only real way to reach that class, is to feast upon such a large amount of chakra that they've created permanent ties to our realm."_

" _But wouldn't that negate the need to eat our life force." Naruto asked._

" _It would seem so, the other eight S-Class Specters have gone into seclusion, rarely making appearances, they have no need for chakra anymore so they don't bother with us."_

" _Then what does that say about The Nine Tails," Naruto piped up. "Following that line of thought, shouldn't the same apply for The Nine Tails, shouldn't it have more than enough chakra to not need anymore from us."_

" _That's what we've been trying to figure out for some time now."_

'And there goes my dreams of being a mercenary.' Naruto thought, a humorous smile on his face yet not quite reaching his eyes.

A cold breeze blew past him, pushing his blonde bangs out of the way, and giving way to the redheaded woman ahead.

Locking eyes with her, Naruto flashed a polite smile.

The woman ahead showed off a predatory grin in response.

Naruto watched her warily, still walking though. Of course when she pulled off her trench coat and revealed her naked body, Naruto stopped dead in his tracks.

'A toned physique, great curves, large yet still perky.' Naruto mentally checked off.

"Your a specter aren't you." Naruto called out, refusing to meet her eyes again lest he be dragged in.

The golden-eyed woman let out a small chuckle at that one, before slowly making her way forwards, Naruto tensing his muscles in preparation.

"How could you tell? All the previous men I encountered became putty in my hands the moment I exposed myself." Licking her lips sensually in the hopes of catching the boy off guard, she was a little disappointed when he didn't show any real reaction. "But you, you became immediately suspicious, not to mention you know of our existence."

How could he tell? How could he _not_ tell! The circumstances they met aside, girl was _Thicc AF_ , he would have been on guard either way. His godfather had instilled quite a bit of knowledge in him since he was a young boy, even taking him to brothels pretty damn often, and in all that time, out of all the females he had been exposed too in his life, no one had achieved this kind of figure. That aside though-

"That doesn't matter." He said with a serious expression, two kunai held reverse grip in front of him.

"And just who do you think you are, some sort of exorci-" She mockingly said before she stopped mid sentence, eyes widening in horror.

The cause of this, a perfect doppelganger of Naruto having descended headfirst from the trees above, two elongated kunai crossed below him.

The specter had no time to react, and Naruto turned around as not to witness the sight.

The sound of her head hitting the floor reached his ears, and the blonde haired boy made sure to whisper sorry, before heading back the way he came.

The two were completely unaware of the shadowy figure that had been observing the entire scene from the rooftop of a near building.

* * *

He didn't like killing them. Naruto didn't truly see the specters as some sort of great evil like the rest.

" _It is a specter, a monster from the world of the dead, an entity that can't stay long within this realm. In order to stay tied to this plain, they must feast upon the chakra, or life energy, of humans."_

They were eating to survive, it was in their nature to feast on humans.

Hell they even made humans feel the greatest pleasure imaginable in their last moments.

This wasn't to say that Naruto felt they should just roam as they please, but he couldn't see them with blind hatred like so many others did.

But that wasn't exactly his choice to make anymore. He had to face off against specters in order to grow stronger, it was his only choice.

"Otherwise." Naruto said softly, eyes weary from the earlier events.

" _In order to stop this beast, The Nine Tailed Fox, we had to resort to a rather unorthodox solution." Hiruzen said with a pained look directed the 15 year old sitting before him._

 _Naruto could see the guilt in The Old Man's eyes, and it only served to confuse him._

" _It was sealed into a baby, you."_

 _And suddenly the whole world came crashing down on him._

" _Holy Shit." The boy murmured out, trembling fingers gripping the armrests of the chair, his face expressing the shock he was going through._

" _However that's not all."_

 _Dammit, there was more!_

" _Like I said before, Specters feast off the life force of humans. So while you have far more chakra than everyone else due to The Nine Tail's presence within you, It's also slowly consuming your life force."_

" _If nothing is done, you'll only live 5 years; if we're lucky, 6."_

And there went his plans for the future.

No becoming a world famous mercenary and traveling the world with his good friend Sasuke.

He wouldn't see his friends from class grow into adults, marry, and have children of their own.

 _He_ , wouldn't have children. Not that he really wanted any, it was fairly normal to not have children where he came from, not to mention it wasn't the greatest idea considering the profession he had been aiming towards.

No, he only had one option left.

" _The seal on your stomach, it holds back The Nine Tails and is directly tied to your life force. Even if you suffer from chakra exhaustion it won't fall apart, however it will be weakened."_

" _In 5 years, when the seal finally breaks, you'll have to defeat it if you want to live."_

" _You expect me to_ _ **fight**_ _that thing!" Naruto looked downright hysteric._

" _The power of all 8 other S - class Specters combined is your only hope of being able to defeat The Nine Tails."_

" _Gather them under your control, it's the only choice you have."_

So here he was, suppose to find some blonde haired green eyed girl, head of her family apparently, and somehow apprentice under her.

"All in the sake of learning how to control the other 8, damn." He said with a sigh.

Plopping down onto his bed, Naruto turned in for the night, intent on getting enough sleep for the school day tomorrow.

'I bet that old coot is laughing his ass off at the fact that I have to go to school.'

His Godfather Jiraiya had made sure he studied and did well back at the academy, it was just the fact that he _had_ to do it again.

* * *

'They act as if this is such a big deal.' Naruto mused as he sat on the steps of the school building, and watched as everyone cheered on the girl who had just cleared the high jump.

Resting his head on his fist, Naruto watched in clear boredom the scene in front of him.

Suddenly, a shadow fell over him and his eyes rose to meet those of the closest friend he had made at this school in the past 3 days he had been here.

"Hey, Naruto." He said with a bright grin. "Whats up with you, you look kind of bored."

"Or perhaps," He said with a teasing grin.

'Not this shit again.' Naruto clenched his jaw in resignation.

"Your eyes are half lidded in barey constrained lust!" he continued on, excitedly looking towards where Naruto's gaze was.

"Ohhh~" he drew out the o, squirming slightly.

"Kanae~, she busty~" He sing-songed

Naruto didn't need to see his face to know the boy had on a lecherous grin.

* * *

The sound of rushing footsteps met his ears, and Naruto panned his eyes towards the prime suspect.

Grabbing her by the shoulders, Naruto spun her slightly, letting go once she had regained her balance.

"Sorry about that little lady." He said with a charming smile.

'Blonde hair, green eyes, more chakra than any civilian here.' He noted.

'Its that boy from the night before.' Sakuya thought with brief surprise, before she schooled her features into something more friendly.

"No, no. I wasn't watching where I was going." She said bashfully, a tinge of pink on her cheeks, showcasing her incredibly acting skills. "I'm the one who should be sorry."

Naruto nodded and watched her run up the fight of stairs, his thoughts occupied with his next move now that he had found the girl.

"I prefer a bit more up here, you know." The other boy piped up, quickly going into his tirade about the power of breasts and whatnot.

Just then, something the kid said reminded Naruto of an important task.

"Hey I haven't gone to the nurse's office since I transferred, and there's some papers I need to give to her." Naruto explained before walking off in the other direction, leaving the perverted boy to his own devices.

* * *

"Anko." Naruto said as soon as he entered, shocked to see familiar purple hair.

"Hey, Naruto! How's it going?" She called out cheerfully, a happy look on her face.

"I'm doing good, and it's good to see you big sis," He replied, referring to her affectionately as 'big sis' due to her being around a lot when he was younger. "Not to be rude, but what are you doing here?"

Wearing a black long sleeve, made of a spandex like material which clung to her body tightly, an orange mini skirt, and black stockings that disappeared under said skirt, Anko didn't look all that different with the white lab coat on.

In fact, it looked damn near exactly the same as what she usually wore.

"Hiruzen stationed me here to look after you." She replied.

That made a lot of sense.

"Anyway's," She drew out, crossing her legs and leaning back within her chair. "You met the little heiress yet?"

"Yeah, I just did in fact." Naruto answered, sitting on the edge of her desk and looking down at her. "I'm trying to figure out how to approach this 'apprenticeship' thing."

"Well, I've got you covered in that area. Just hear me out for a sec' will ya?"

Spinning around to get a better look at him, Anko flashed him a smirk that he had become all too familiar with over the years.

She was about to cause mischief and rope some unfortunate soul into an unfavorable situation.

As much as he wanted to decline, his body tensing and screaming for him to "Get the Fuck Out Of There Right Now!", he didn't have much choice.

"Living on your own for quite some time, you've had to get used to cleaning after yourself, and cooking, right?" She said, Naruto nodding in response.

"Well I've gone over to her place a few times before," Pupil-less brown eyes staring him down. "And boy does she need a maid."

Fuck.

"The way I see it, this is your best bet to get close to her." The purple haired woman proposed.

"And I can even take care of all the paperwork and such, as long as you do me one favor." She said with a disarming smile, not at all helping ease Naruto, but the boy relenting otherwise.

* * *

"God, I hate having to clean up after that woman's experiments." Naruto groaned, finally having finished cleaning the Chemistry Lab.

"She's so damned irresponsible," Naruto grumbled, as he threw away the last scrap of paper into the trashcan. "I couldn't even leave her with a cat, and they tend to take care of themselves."

Suddenly, a red cat appeared in his field of vision, sitting on a branch just outside the window and staring at him with its green eyes.

"Wow," Naruto said sending a smile its way. "Good timing little buddy."

Then a scream tore through the hall just outside, the cat leaping away at the disturbance.

"Damn, not so good timing."

Schooling his face into a serious expression, Naruto walked out the Chem Lab to investigate.

* * *

"Kanae, Fuzuki, what's happeni-" Naruto didn't even need to finish.

The smell of fresh blood assaulted his nostrils, and gave him all the answer he needed.

Quickly erasing the distance between him and the girl laying in a puddle of her own blood, Naruto knelt down to assess her injuries.

'Ok, she can make it still.' Naruto thought after a short time, now looking up and towards the end of the hall at the perpetrator.

Locking eyes with the beast, the young man couldn't think of a motive.

The Specter had wounded the girl and left her to die, this wasn't typical behaviour.

Naruto wouldn't mind going all out on this one.

"You two." He ordered softly, gaining the attention of the two girls behind him who had frozen in shock. "I want you to call an ambulance for this girl, I'll hold him off."

"Wait you can't be serious!" Fuzuki cried out in a hushed whisper.

"Just call one." He said calmly, not daring to take his eyes off the beast in front of him. "She's losing a lot of blood."

The click - clack of heels coming in their direction reached the trio's ears.

"That won't be necessary." Came a familiar voice.

Naruto smiled in relief it was Anko, this girl was in safe hands.

Watching as the Specter turned on it's heels, and walked down the hall, Naruto rose from his kneeling position, never taking his eyes away from the direction it headed in.

"Anko." He called out softly.

"Go for it."

* * *

Having let his senses guide him to the nearest source of spiritual chakra, Naruto was surprised by the sight in front of him.

"I don't know who you are, but can you help me?" The redheaded women asked.

"Yeah, of course." Naruto replied, kneeling down to pull it out.

'Damn, I really need to get my sensory skills honed.'

Seeing as the Archery Club was a straight shot away from their current position, he never found it suspicious that this skimpily dressed women had been posted to this tree with an arrow.

He did find it suspicious when a short electrical spark shot into his hand as he yanked the arrow out of the tree.

"What the hell are you doing!" A girl screamed from behind Naruto, cutting off any thoughts on the situation.

Turning around, it was the one and only Shimazu.

"So you're the one who shot the arrow." He replied, seemingly ignoring her previous remark, focused more on the bow in her hand.

"I finally had her, and you just had to screw things up!" She yelled out in clear frustration, before drawing back the string on her bow and taking aim. "Now get out of the way."

"I haven't done anything." The redheaded woma-, no specter said, practically growling in anger.

"As if I'd fall for that, Now move out of the way." The blonde girl remarked, bow still aimed at the kneeling woman.

"She's not the one you're looking for." Naruto said with an air of finality, stepping in front of the specter on her knees.

'Not all specters are bad.' The words rung in his head, words he had been wanting to believe in for some time, and now being proven.

"What makes you say that." Her hand never wavered, her arrow was still locked on the duo.

"The one who attacked the girl inside," Naruto began to explain, crossing his arms and fixing her with a stern look. "It has a different chaka signature than her. You have the wrong specter."

"You know about them?" Shimazu asked with suspicion, seemingly moving her aim onto the blonde haired boy rather than the red headed woman.

A slip of attention she was all too happy to take advantage of.

"I grow tired of you, Shimazu girl." Naruto heard the slightly booming voice reverberate throughout his surroundings, the origin being above him.

Turning slightly, Naruto eyed her transformation with wonder, his eyes landing on the two tails behind her.

'This is too good a chance to pass up, my first lead in finding them.' Naruto concluded.

"See you later boy, and thanks for the help." She said, crouching slightly in preparation for a giant leap, but not before Naruto got his final word in.

"Anytime." He said quietly enough so that Shimazu wouldn't hear him, watching the large cat leap onto school buildings and disappear into the distance.

"This is all your fault, you're the one who bumped into me this morning. Naruto Uzumaki." She wheeled on him furiously, a snarl on her features and her leg halfway through its arc on a collision course with Naruto's chest.

However, Naruto easily caught the foot to her surprise, before leveling her with a glare of his own.

"Look I already told you, she's not the one you're looking for." Releasing her foot, he began walking back towards the school building letting his senses pan out. "And if you keep arguing, we're just wasting time when we should be finding the real culprit."

* * *

"It's her." She whispered.

She was still set on the two tailed cat being the culprit.

Looking down the hallway, he couldn't see anything, but he could definitely feel it. The same signature from before.

Naruto slowed his breathing in anticipation for the battle, his heart slowing to match the beat of the metronome in the music room next door.

It was throwing his sense of hearing off, so Naruto honed his sensory abilities once more, Sakuya drawing her arrow, and taking aim down the hall.

That was until Naruto felt the signature right on top of him.

His eye's opened wide, and he sorely regretted not bringing his weapons to school that day. Luckily for him, Sakuya had picked up on it too, and released her arrow, striking the beast and sending it crashing through the window.

Sakuya immediately raced down the hallway and to the nearest stairs; Naruto leapt out the window the massive beast had exited through.

Flickering mid fall, his form vanished before reappearing on the grass below, crouched slightly, his feet not making a sound and his body coiled up for a fight.

When his eyes landed on the only form there, he loosened his stance by a margin,, and the serious expression left his face.

"Oh hey, it's you again." He greeted with little emotion, his instincts still on the high, listening for any sign of the specter they were actually looking for.

"So it was you!" Sakuya, who had just appeared at the scene, said angrily.

"Not so fast now," Naruto said, pushing the bow slightly so its arrow wasn't aimed at the cat girl in front. "The wound on her arm is a gash, not from an arrow."

"How do you know it didn't just graze her." She challenged, eyes narrowed slightly.

"Trust me on this, You don't bleed like that from just a graze." Naruto coolly remarked, pursing his lips and looking off to the side.

The signature was approaching at an alarming rate, but where was it?

The hairs on his neck and arms stood stiff, and his body screamed for him to move. Adrenaline and blood began pumping through his bloodstream at an incredibly rapid rate, chakra fooding his coils and circulating all throughout in response to this perceived threat.

A lightning bolt struck the ground not far from their position, and in its place stood a large white hound, red eyes watching them with a snarl on it's face, lightning crackling off its body in random intervals.

The scene reminded him a bit of his dark haired friend back home.

"A lightning beast, damn." The girl muttered under her breath. "He's strong."

Yes, this new enemy was strong, however…

"You'll prove good practice." Naruto muttered quietly, rolling up the sleeves on his white shirt, and stepping forward, each step prompting a short burst of lightning.

"Hey what the hell are you doing!" Sakuya cried out, darting forward to grab him by the arm and stop his advance.

Or at least that's what he believed her intentions were, she never really got that far as a lightning bolt descended and managed to tear a line through the bottom ¾ of her skirt.

She didn't suffer much more damage than that, so Naruto turned back to face the specter, locking eyes with the snarling visage present.

" _Tsumuha_." Even if it was a whisper, Naruto heard the words escape the girl's lips as an arrow tore through the air, passing inches away from his head, and imbedding itself in the wolf's forehead.

"What?" Sakuya uttered in bafflement at the new scene before her.

Naruto felt it before he saw it, being intimately aware of what a large build up of electricity felt like. The darkening of neighborhoods and the electricity pouring into the field in torrents only proved his theory.

"Look at his eyes, he's gone mad." She insisted.

Naruto wouldn't have that, he was already against the idea of killing them. But not only that, he felt something different about this one.

The specter was still capable of accurate long range attacks, and that first shot it fired at Sakuya was obviously a warning. So why couldn't she see that, the wolf still had the sense to see enough even through the spurt of madness.

She wasn't like the rest was she?

'No.' He thought shaking his head lightly, and eyeing her face from the side.

'She's worse it would seem.' He concluded.

She was incredibly hostile towards specters, and she seemed to regard them all with suspicion if the two tonight were any example of what was to come.

'But that doesn't matter right now.' He thought, resolve building as he viewed the new form the beast had taken, easily 4 times the size as before.

"Hey you're a Shimazu right," The cat woman called out, speaking up for the first time since the short battle had begun. "Hurry up and finish him off so I can have my revenge!"

"Why don't you do it!" The blonde haired girl shot back.

Sakuya watched as she brought her claws out and prepared to fight, but Naruto was focused on other things.

Like the charging of lightning he could feel in the air.

A large crack split the air as a bolt of lightning struck the area where the redhead was standing.

Several feet away, Naruto stood, the woman in his arms.

Both Sakuya and The Redhead looked at him in surprise, both amazed at the speed he had just moved.

The white wolf capitalized on this moment of unattentiveness by sending another bolt of lightning dangerously close to Sakuya.

Standing several feet away from the last lightning strike, Naruto stood with Sakuya, the girls bow aimed at the monstrous specter ahead.

'Again, he shot an attack that would only graze us, but why?' Naruto thought, a small frown on his face.

" _Tsumugare_." She breathed out as another arrow tore through the air, splitting into several mid flight.

Unfortunately, a stream of lightning blocked all the arrows.

"Tch." Screwing her face into one of frustration, the girl fired off a _Murasame_.

They also proved largely ineffective when a similar attack as before stopped them.

If one thing was clear to him now, it was that it was time to get involved.

Stepping forward, once again his arm was caught in a strong grip, although this time it wasn't from the blonde haired girl.

"I can see your fast, and that you probably have other tricks up your sleeve, but what can you do?" The redheaded cat girl asked, her tone laced with a tinge of concern for the young man who had vouched for her innocence since they had met.

"Don't worry about me." He assured, turning his head to look into her eyes from over his shoulder, a light smirk playing on his features. "After all Wind beats Lightning."

She was confused about that last statement, but ultimately relented, releasing her grasp on him.

Wind chakra gathered in his lungs and with absolutely no hand seals, a testament to how skilled he was with his nature, Naruto blew out a large powerful gust of air that blew straight through the outer layer of lightning the beast surrounded itself with.

Not taking his hand away from his mouth, and barely taking the time to suck in another breath, he followed up with _Wind Style: Drilling Air Bullets_ , which tore through the flesh of the lightning beast, and left a nice amount of holes in its form.

'The perfect time to attack, with no more electricity to gather from the city, he can't heal himself anymore, and due to not seeing this before, I've caught him completely off guard.' Naruto thought in appreciation, however still wary of the wolf's next move.

The beast roared in pain, before gathering a large amount of lightning and pulsing it out, sending a wave of electricity his way.

Naruto having felt the rapid charge up, immediately pumped a large amount of chakra to his feet, sending him flying high above the field. Naruto didn't realize his mistake until he reached the apex of his ascent.

Flipping his body over so his back was now facing the ground, Naruto watched in amazement as a literal Lightning Dragon broke through the clouds, and lunged at him.

There was absolutely no room to dodge, and it would take too long to wrap his chakra around anything that he could substitute with since he was so far above the field. Coating his hands and forearms in a thick layer of wind chakra, Naruto took the only choice he still had available and met it head on.

The 2 other girls on the field watched in a mix of awe and terror as the large chinese dragon made purely of lightning pushed Naruto downwards to meet the ground at speeds their eyes couldn't track.

Once the two met the ground, the lightning lost form and exploded, cratering the ground at impact and charring the grass around the area.

They thought it was over, there was no trace of the boy, and even if there was they didn't believe he could get up from something like that.

However, before anyone on the field could make the first move, bright golden chains burst from the ground and wrapped around the specters form.

First loosely, but once they found their hold on the lightning beast, they tightened around its form until the beast's legs were swept from underneath himself. Falling to its side, bound together against the unbreakable chains of chakra.

The two girls looked at the hole Naruto had originally crashed into, only to see him rising from the dirt, the only signs of damage being a large gash along his right bicep. They honed in on the golden chains that started from his lower back, translucent where they joined but strengthening into one solid chain a few inches out.

The lightning beast growled in anger, before releasing a large amount of lightning through its body, Naruto's chakra chains picking up the current and transferring it to him as well as the beast.

Naruto howled in agony, but soon grit his teeth through the pain.

Reinforcing the link he had through the chains, Naruto pumped insanely large amounts of chakra through them until something peculiar happened.

He could feel the beasts energy draining at a fast rate, the lightning and all transferring to him. Naruto could feel a new power in him.

He had just absorbed the lightning beasts ability to manipulate lightning!

After this revelation it was easy work to take the lightning beast down. Once its growls and howls and roars had dampened down into whines, Naruto broke the connection.

The chains fell limp onto the ground, seemingly disappearing into it, as Naruto walked over to the powerless beast lying on its side.

"Sorry bud, but I'm gonna have to put you down." Naruto wearily said, leaning against the white wolf's back, and petting his face, the beast uncaring of the blood the blonde was matting in his fur. "I'll put you out of your misery, alright."

The wolf whined slightly in response, but Naruto could see the understanding in it's eyes.

The wolf was in full acceptance at this point.

Closing his eyes and taking a deep breath to gather his resolve, Naruto grasped his right wrist with his left hand, sparks of electricity dancing off his fingertips and lightning sporadically racing up his forearm, crackling off into the air around his arms and disappearing into thin wisps, uncaring of the blood flowing down his arm from a cut along his bicep.

The smell of ozone and blood was dominating his sense of smell, burning his nostrils as they fought a battle for dominance.

A battle unlike the one of attrition that had occurred earlier.

It was clear that the scent would remain lingering around the field for days to come, neither side would wear eachother out anytime soon.

With it's eyes now closed, Naruto couldn't help but see the specter as a dog that had strayed from home. Images of another white haired large dog with his owner Kiba, flashed through his mind, and any resolve Naruto had gathered immediately disappeared.

Like the life slowly flickering out of the wolf, the lightning Naruto wielded died within his palm.

"No matter what anyone says, you're a good boy." Naruto said, leaning forward and planting a peck on the wolf's snout.

Suddenly, several images flooded his mind, a small story playing out and soon ending.

"Shiro, huh." He tested the new name on his tongue, the beast underneath him immediately responding with a low whine.

"I hereby put you to rest, Shiro." Naruto spoke after a sight moment of hesitation.

The Lightning Beast disappeared into nothingness, the only hint of its presence being a small white flower budding where he last lay.

Huffing a sigh, Naruto walked to where the two girls were waiting.

"I would give you a goodbye kiss," The redhead said as she sauntered up to his side, and put her hand on his shoulder. "But since you kissed that mut over there, you'll just have to settle with one on the cheek."

And with cat like grace, The redhead moved to peck him on the cheek.

"Thanks," Naruto said, before pausing slightly and picking back up again. "Tama?"

"W-What."She stuttered out in a small panic, backing away from him ever so slightly.

"So thats your real name." Sakuya blurted out with glee, a manic gleam in her eye as she aimed her bow at the redhead.

"Woah, woah now." Naruto called out stepping in front of Tama in a protective manner, hands out in placating fashion to try and calm down the blonde haired girl to no avail. "What do you think you're up to now."

"We know her true name, I can send her back now." She said with a nasty smile.

"Mind explaining what this 'true name' is all about." He asked calmly, his arm being held by a nervous Tama who cowered behind him.

A frown appeared on the blonde girl's face for a moment, and he could see the annoyance in her eyes as they contrasted with the rays of light diffusing through the trees that served to signal the end of the day.

"Like the name suggests, it's the true name given to them. A secret they hold more dear than their own lives, because if one finds out, they have complete control."

Stepping forward ever so slightly, the girl focused a glare on the blonde haired boy.

"Im thankful for your help, but I need you to step out the way. Now." She ordered.

Naruto just looked at her with an indifferent expression, this girl didn't intimidate him.

"Since I'm the one who first found out, and I'm the one who first said her name, doesn't that mean she's my charge." Naruto said coolly, his hand reaching behind and grasping Tama's waist, soothing her with his chakra, the shivering of her frame stopping almost immediately.

Sakuya's face went through a mirade of emotions, frustration being high among them, until finally-

"Fine." She said with an explosive sigh. "I just wanna go home at this point."

"Thank you, Master!" Tama cried out, popping up in front of Naruto, a beaming smile on her face.

Seemingly unable to hold her joy any longer, she leapt onto Naruto pulling him into the tightest hug she could muster. Naruto did an admirable job holding her up the way he did, seeing as she had chosen to suffocate him in her enormous bust.

"Hey, Kiddo's!" A familiar voice called out.

"Mitarashi-sensei?" Sakuya asked in shock.

Letting Tama go, to her reluctance, Naruto turned around to meet a familiar sight.

"Hey, sis." Naruto said, observing the bag of dango in her hand. "You grab any for me?"

"Wait, sis?" Both the blonde and redhead girls asked simultaneously.

Anko held the grocery bag up to view, a smirk on her features as Naruto grabbed some.

"Well, congrats on taking the bad boy down," She said looking at all three, Naruto returning to Tama's side, eventually offering one stick of dango to her. "However it seems as if you're all tired, how about we go all go to Shimazu's place, we still have much to discuss."

* * *

"She wasn't kidding, this place is a mess." Naruto said upon first glance.

Sakuya didn't deign a response, instead looking sheepishly in the other direction.

The trio followed Anko into the living room, everyone besides Sakuya taking seats on the couch.

"You know hun, I'm all for dressing skimpy, but there's a time and a place for that." Anko commented, referring to the tear in Sakuya's skirt.

Instantly bounding up the stairs, they all listened as she slammed the door shut, presumably to dress in a new attire.

"The head of the Shimazu family, living on her own in a branch family house." Anko spoke up, lounging languidly on the couch.

"The actual clan lives in Kamakura, a place not too far."

Naruto listened to her as she explained the circumstances of Sakuya living here, petting Tama's head, who had taken to resting her head in his lap.

"She's apparently got her reasons for the move, although I couldn't tell you why." Anko said with a sigh, apparently not the only one a little tired. "The Old Man up top didn't see fit to tell me all of that."

A few moments passed between Anko's last statement and Sakuya returning to the living room, the only sound in the previously quiet room having been Tama's quiet hum's.

"Sakuya, you remember that maid I was telling you about, here he is." Anko delivered, the whole thing lacking ay excitement.

"You can't be serious." Sakuya replied, incredulous that she would be spending more time with them, especially that cat.

" I am, and because Naruto here only just transferred, he'll be moving in with you. Making the whole servant thing run smoother."

"What, no way! Naruto, you can't possibly be ok with this can you?" Sakuya looked for support from Naruto, the boy occupied with his head petting but still answering.

"Actually, this makes things easier for me, I was previously staying in a motel while I was looking for a permanent residence, this is a good deal for me and Tama." Naruto smiled down at the cat girl who was like putty under his ministrations.

The little blonde girl just resigned herself to the new living situation, and walked out the door.

"You can have the room at the end of the hall upstairs, I'm going to bed." She said as she walked out.

Raising himself up from the chair, Naruto took another look around the room.

"I guess I'll clean up this room at the very least before I go to bed tonight." He said, earning a smile from Anko.

"Master, I'll help you." Tama offered excitedly, more than happy to help the man who had only helped her out since they first met.

"Please don't call me Master, really, Naruto is just fine."

* * *

"Im exhausted, I should've just stopped after the first room." Naruto yawned from his position seated in the classroom.

"Hey Naruto, your new job got you doing physical labor?" The same boy from before asked as he approached the blonde's seat.

"No, nothing like that, I just let the time get away from me last night that's all." Naruto said with eyes red from a lack of sleep.

The next people to walk in were Kanae and Fuzuki, who thanked him for his help yesterday.

"Yeah, Mitarashi sensei said she'd be alright." Kanae informed him.

"That's good to hear." He said with an easy smile.

"I think I see you in a new light."

"Yeah, you're pretty manly."

As Naruto basked in the attention, the other boy almost immediately ruined his good mood.

"Hey you aren't tired cause you lost track of time while you were with these two."

* * *

"You're pretty good at acting like you actually care about those around you, I bet you'd make a good diplomat one day." Naruto commented as he walked down the hall with Sakuya, the girl having just pulled him out of class for a chat.

"Shut up." She returned, eyes straight ahead on the hallway.

"It sounds like a new gate opened." She said after a few seconds of silence.

"That must be what I felt last night." Naruto relied offhandedly.

It seemed to draw her attention however, as the blonde girl turned to look him in the eyes, suspicion easy to read on her face.

"You haven't told me how you know so much about specters, or your fighting abilities." She suddenly probed.

"And I don't have the slightest intentions of explaining them to you, just know that I'm not a spy or anything like that."

Grabbing his collar in a show of aggression, Sakuya leaned in fairly close, a heated glare on her brow.

"Quit fucking with me, Uzumaki." She bit out, struggling not to grind her teeth at the boy's insolence, how dare he withhold information from her, head of the Shimazu family, a prestigious clan that dated back for centuries.

Naruto just stared down at her coldly, eyes narrowed in a show of how little this girl intimidated him. Eyes darkening due to the effects and serving to change his whole demeanor into something much less friendly.

'I forget how much of a cunt she is.' Naruto thought.

Sakuya wasn't quite sure what happened, but Naruto suddenly looked a lot less like someone she could just order around. Perhaps it was the way his aura seemed to visibly change, taking on the demeanor of a predator, much more wild and aggressive, a lot like the white wolf they had fought last night.

"We're wasting time here, we should go looking for signs of this opened gate, I can feel that it's on school grounds." Naruto said after a short stare down.

Sakuya just hefted out a sigh, something she had been doing quite often with Naruto around, before letting go of the taller blonde's collar and turning around.

Walking down the hall at a clipped pace, she agreed with his sentiments.

Naruto let his hands slide into his pockets, fingering the kunai and shuriken he had taken with him today, not willing to be caught off guard like the night before.

Eyes still narrowed, a stern yet somewhat indifferent look across his features, Naruto was in full blown Merc-mode. Senses heightened, his breathing steady, chakra racing through his body, the new feeling of lightning chakra surging along with his natural affinity to wind, Naruto followed after Sakuya, his steps measured and completely silent.

Whatever came next, he was ready to face it.

* * *

 **AN:** First off let me start by saying this will in no way be a NarutoxSakuya pairing. Not just because I personally dislike the girl, but because it also conflicts with Naruto's storyline, and the role he plays in this story.

Now, this wasn't one of the original 4 stories I was going to write, this just came to mind after watching a couple episodes of Isuca. After the first 6 or so episodes, I couldn't not write about it. Like someone on Kissanime said "Sakuya is like the Feminazi version of Naruto.", and boy is that true. There are a ton of similarities between the two, which I will not get into currently. But that's just to explain why this story popped up out of nowhere.

Ive also got some ideas running through my head about a NarutoxWitchcraft Works crossover, but I shouldn't get into that for some time, I'm perfectly fine writing down plot outlines, and just rewatching the show if I need inspiration to write that story.

I've also decided on somewhat of an update schedule. I'll be treating my stories like the anime they're based off of, and considering writing arc's or seasons at a time. For example, moving onto a certain arc in one story, then once I complete that, Ill move and update a different one. However I'm not sure when I'll get around to it. I have one of three options.

Continue this story, and finish the first season.

Work on Surprises Lie Within Frozen Tundras, and complete that arc.

Get back to my original plan of finishing up the first chapters for my originally planned 2 stories.

I would love to do option number three, but I had an incredibly difficult time writing the first chapter for Naruto: Midnight Green, the story has the most potential, and probably my favorite idea wise with everything I have planned to do with it. Thing is though, it felt really rushed, and I wasn't sure exactly what I wanted to present within that first chapter. The main reason i wrote this story wasto keep me occupied.

 **Note:** For all those waiting patiently for  Pulse/Surreal, I'm currently working on all the arc's and story structure/plot, and writing everything down, as that was the only story I didn't have a solid structure for. Also, I plan to change the tone some, so that the story becomes a bit more serious, plus I have a ton in mind for the future, I really want to explore the character development aspect, as it just gives so much room to work with, and just thinking about it helps me churn out more arcs, and a more solid story. So while i'm still reading though the light novel, something I'll catch up on before I continue with that story, just know that I have a lot in store for the story, and it should be really good once I get around to that point.


	2. Red Tori Gates, Shrines, and Tiger Maple

" _Quit fucking with me, Uzumaki." She bit out, struggling not to grind her teeth at the boy's insolence, how dare he withhold information from her, head of the Shimazu family, a prestigious clan that dated back for centuries._

 _Naruto just stared down at her coldly, eyes narrowed in a show of how little this girl intimidated him. Eyes darkening due to the effects and serving to change his whole demeanor into something much less friendly._

' _I forget how much of a cunt she is.' Naruto thought._

 _Sakuya wasn't quite sure what happened, but Naruto suddenly looked a lot less like someone she could just order around. Perhaps it was the way his aura seemed to visibly change, taking on the demeanor of a predator, much more wild and aggressive, a lot like the white wolf they had fought last night._

" _We're wasting time here, we should go looking for signs of this opened gate, I can feel that it's on school grounds." Naruto said after a short stare down._

 _Sakuya just hefted out a sigh, something she had been doing quite often with Naruto around, before letting go of the taller blonde's collar and turning around._

 _Walking down the hall at a clipped pace, she agreed with his sentiments._

 _Naruto let his hands slide into his pockets, fingering the kunai and shuriken he had taken with him today, not willing to be caught off guard like the night before._

 _Eyes still narrowed, a stern yet somewhat indifferent look across his features, Naruto was in full blown Merc-mode. Senses heightened, his breathing steady, chakra racing through his body, the new feeling of lightning chakra surging along with his natural affinity to wind, Naruto followed after Sakuya, his steps measured and completely silent._

 _Whatever came next, he was ready to face it._

* * *

Chapter 2: Red Tori Gates, Shrines, and Tiger Maple

* * *

Naruto had calmed down by the time they had finally reached the chem lab, however he would soon find out that letting his guard down hadn't been a good idea.

"Hey, Anko. You know anything about the-" Naruto didn't get to finish his sentence upon opening the door to the room, something barreled into him and tackled him to the ground.

"The hell is she doing here!?" Sakuya asked angrily.

The object of her ire; Tama, who was busy rubbing her face against Naruto's in a show of affection, quickly retorted.

"Because Master's here!" She said just as angrily.

Naruto tried reminding her not to address him as "Master", but she didn't seem to hear; occupied in a glare match with the blond mystic.

"Were right next to Kamakura, we can't exactly let a specter run about." Anko having had her fill of fun finally stepped in and gave explanations in a rare display of maturity. "It's better to keep her here where we can keep an eye on her, rather than the mansion."

"I would of just chained her up." Sakuya huffed in indignation, crossing her arms and sneering slightly.

"No," Naruto replied, holding up the cat girl by the waist seeing as she refused to let go of him. "You would have killed her first chance you had."

Sakuya threw a glare at the boy, Tama blowing raspberries in her direction didn't exactly help her mood.

Luckily, Naruto fulfilled his job as mediator and tried to defuse the situation.

"Tama, don't taunt her." He ordered, setting her down and looking the redhead in the eye. "We'll all be working together as a team so we need to get along."

"And you, Sakuya." Turning towards her and softening his features, Naruto hoped he could get across to her. "Tama will be sticking around indefinitely, you should make an effort to get along."

The two huffed and turned away from one another, Naruto failing to get them to come together, however it did seem that they settled down somewhat.

There was still something Naruto wanted to know before they got down to business; he had noticed it when he was holding Tama earlier.

"Tama?" He asked quietly, getting a cheerful yes in response.

"Why aren't you wearing any panties!" He finally cracked.

"Oh." She said in a cute manner, pulling up the hem of her skirt in response. "They feel too restrictive."

"Please don't flash me," Naruto shook his head in exasperation. "You remind me far too much of those older women who couldn't hold their sake back home."

"Mitarashi sensei, why didn't you do anything about this?" Sakuya asked the purple haired woman sitting at the desk in front of them.

"Don't bother." Naruto said as he pulled Tama closer to him, and away from his older sister figure. "Anko doesn't wear panties either."

"And just how do you know!"

"Ah, Naruto you know me too well."

"AHHHHH!"

The atmosphere in the room shifted once the screams had sounded off, and an eerie hush had fell over them.

Anko's expression fell into one of seriousness as she vaulted over the desk and crossed the space between it and the door in one smooth motion.

Tama was shocked and looked to Naruto for answers, unable to discern anything with the stern expression on his face. It looked a lot like the expression he wore last night while facing off with the Lightning Beast.

Sakuya rushed after Anko, with Naruto grabbing Tama and bringing up the rear.

The team of four quickly flew down the hall, Naruto actually flickering away once the origin of the screams, the girls locker room, came into view.

* * *

Naruto could clearly smell the arousal rolling off the two girls writhing along the floor, he didn't need to hear their loud moans to know.

"My leg… my leg's been chewed down to the bone~"

He didn't need to hear that either.

"What the hell is she going on about?" Sakuya asked in horror.

"It's an illusion, their having their life force taken while being shown an illusion of being eaten." Anko answered.

"That's some strange fetish." Naruto said off to the side, Anko trying to keep the serious face, but ultimately cracking a grin at the absurdity.

"Eww, a rat!" The short blonde shrieked in horror, pointing behind them to the body of a girl being dragged into a locker by multiple rats.

Upon being found, the rats rapidly morphed into a tall figure with a mask adorning a long beak for the nose, and a black robe that covered it's form.

"Black death, eh? How fitting." Naruto muttered under his breath.

Tama immediately leapt into the fray, striking at the rat spirit with a wickedly sharp clawed hand. The rat spirit shifted to the side at the very last moment and dodged her initial attack. Following up, the new specter jumped through the window outside, Tama quickly following.

Naruto stood there tracking everything with an observant eye, tracking the movements with a calculated gaze that revealed quite a bit about the enemy in the short farce that had occurred.

"Anko."

"Yeah, yeah I know." She said looking over at him, sighing in displeasure. "I wish I could go fight too, but this nurse job is top priority."

Naruto smiled at her in thanks, before panning his eyes for the little blonde. He spotted her crouched in the corner, fear evident in her features.

'Damn.' He didn't have much time, he would have to resort to some back handedness if he wanted to get her back into the fight.

"Aren't you the next head of the Shimazu Clan, how bleak their future seems with a leader who can't handle something like this." Naruto said, choosing to keep the snarkiness to a minimum.

He needed her pride to kick in, not for her to get pissed at him.

"Let's go, Uzumaki."

Luckily it seemed to do the trick.

* * *

"Tama." Naruto called out once the two arrived on the scene.

The foe they encountered wasn't the robed figure from before, this was just a large pack of feral rats. It seemed Tama had been taking care of them, but it was clear from the slight tremble in her legs, the enemy was taking its toll on her.

"Naruto." She returned, relief in her features and a new fighting drive in her.

"Damn, there's no end to them is there." Sakuya piped up, her apparent unease around the little rodents gone for the time being.

"We just need to get all of them." Was Tama's response.

Unfortunately, before she could make good on it, she collapsed to the ground.

"Shit." Naruto cursed under his breathed, quickly gathering lightning into his right hand, Naruto prepared to fry all the rats in one go.

Fortunately, or unfortunately, the rats scattered once they're opponent fell, thus Naruto let the lightning fizzle into inexistence.

Naruto immediately kneeled onto the floor, scooping up Tama's head into his lap and brushing her bangs out of her face.

"She's almost out of life force." Sakuya commented from above.

So that's what this was.

"When's the last time you've sucked out lifeforce?" She asked forcefully.

Tama blearily opened her eyes, showing off a weak yet well meaning smile to Naruto, before she eventually got to answering.

"I don't remember."

"Wait, have you never actually attacked anyone?" Sakuya asked in disbelief, surely the cat girl had, right?

"Cat's don't forget debt's." She replied simply, before passing out.

"Silly," Naruto said fondly, stroking his charges head in what he hoped was comforting. "Dogs are the ones who don't forget debts."

"Specters can't live without sucking someone's life force."

"Hmm." He grunted in acknowledgement.

"I'll just have to give her mine."

"I won't discourage you from it, your combat abilities prove that you have a fair amount of spiritual energy." She began, surprising Naruto with her level headedness, something she only tended to show when in battle. "However what will you do next time. If you don't continuously supply her it'll keep happening, then you'll end up dying."

Naruto seemed to ignore her words, shaking Tama awake and telling her what they were about to do. The cat girl seemed hesitant at first, but she complied once Naruto told her it was an order.

Before their lips met, Naruto said once last thing.

"You underestimate just how much spiritual energy I possess." And wasting no more time, the two met their lips together in a kiss.

Very quickly the kiss became a heated battle of tongues, and Sakuya had to look away in embarrassment.

Once the task was over with, Tama released the blonde boy who had passed out due to this being his first transfer. Tama tilted her head in confusion when she looked at Naruto's facial expression.

He should've been smiling like a goofball, Tama was a specter after all, and specters gave humans the best possible pleasure.

So why was his face scrunched up slightly.

Her thoughts were cut off though when the energy she took from her master started to kick in. It pumped throughout her entire body, and she could feel her heartbeat pulsing faster as it pounded in her ears. A wave of energy crashed into her, and she could feel herself transforming.

Sakuya gasped slightly when she took in the cat girls new appearance. The redhead looked much more mature than before, her hair growing longer, and her facial features having become much sharper.

Just when she was about to ask what happened though, cracks appeared in the ground beneath them until the foundation broke.

Sakuya screamed slightly as she fell, thankfully though, Tama caught both her and Naruto before they reached the floor at the bottom of the large cave beneath them.

Setting the two of them down, Tama faced the main culprit.

"Look after him for a bit will ya." She told her, Sakuya complying, and putting the blonde boys head in her lap and watching the fight about to unfold.

"Alright, I've got you know, ya little vermin." Tama said with a smirk, as she stared down the robed figure before her.

A high pitched squeaking noise was her only response as the two began to clash.

* * *

The reason for Naruto facial expression after the kiss became known to him once he blacked out.

He expected to wake up once the fighting was all finished, and to then congratulate his new charge.

What he wasn't expecting was to wake up in his current surroundings.

The slow trickle of water was the only sound there. Naruto stood up and felt grass underneath his bare feet. He wasn't sure where his shoes were, but then again, he wasn't sure about a lot of things going on at the moment.

He seemed to be in a small garden, one that was surrounded on all sides by water with 4 small red wooden bridges leading into 4 different directions. Around him were walkways that connected a large complex. It looked almost like a shrine with the red bridges and guardrails.

Stepping onto the bridge in front of him, Naruto walked straight ahead to the largest building he could see. There was no land beneath him, as far as the eye could see, all he could make out was water, red torii gates and lanterns hanging in the distance being the only reprieve.

Looking at the dark waters below, Naruto looked at the reflection of the moon, or rather moons. Continuing on his way, Naruto observed the polished hardwood floor beneath his feet that reflecting just as well as-

Wait a second!

Whipping his head up, Naruto widened his eyes in shock as he looked at the anomaly above. One was slightly covered by the other, but there most definitely was TWO moons hanging above.

"Beautiful sight isn't it?"

Turning around, Naruto felt the breath in his lungs get stolen from him as he eyed the woman who had just appeared.

There was so much to look at, Naruto stood dumbfounded as his eyes drunk in her entire appearance. God was she fucking beautiful. He didn't even know what to focus on anymore.

Her hair was a deep black, blending into the dark surroundings, yet still reflecting the light from above. Her hair was done up in a traditional eastern asian style, a bun pulling back most of her hair, two crystal hair pins holding it in place, while she allowed the rest to fall behind her ears and trail down her back, her bangs left alone near the sides to fall and frame her face. There was a silky sheen to it, it was clear to the boy just how much she took care of it, her hair alone was something he wouldn't mind staring at for hours on end.

A silk kimono adorned her frame, doing absolutely nothing to hide her figure. Red and black, a pattern like tiger maple formed the front of her dress, tight obsidian black lines contrasting with the dark blood-like red, strongly resembling crimson waters. His eyes were lead to her chest first, large breasts, somewhere between C and D, were pushed up by her navy Blue obi. A slim waist line, leading down into what were some fairly wide hips, more than likely hiding a nice ass that he wouldn't get to see until she turned around.

A strong jawline, but not too sharp to look unfeminine, sat below plump ruby red lips. A smile on her face showing off a row of shiny white teeth. A cute and dainty nose like that of royalty, creamy white skin, and long bold eyelashes were placed around a unique set of eyes.

Deep wine red iris' that lightened up a bit further away from her pupils. Pupils slit like those of a reptile, yet not offsetting in the least paired with the rest of her body.

It took all of 7 seconds for him to respond, having finished staring.

"Yeah, I guess you could say that." His voice starting out fairly weak from the shock of such a sight.

She leaned her arms against the railing next to him, leaning over slightly and staring off into the far distance.

For the life of him, he could not take his eyes off this woman. As far as looks went, she was perfect. He could spend hours trying to nitpick, and he wouldn't find a damn thing. Her skin was flawless, a sign of purity with how pale she was, but it wasn't sickly. No imperfections on her skin, no blemishes, and her proportions were all correct. Better than correct, he might add. She was his dream girl incarnate.

No, her looks topped even that. Naruto was sure that he would've fucked up some detail if he tried to make the embodiment of perfect.

The girl in front of him didn't have any of that.

Crimson eyes half lidded in satisfaction held his attention. It was those unique eyes of hers that truly captivated him.

It was at that point that Naruto finally took his eyes off of her, and returned to reality. His mind snapped back to attention and he returned to the present.

Looking down, he noticed how his hand had been reaching to grab her, how his body had been inching closer and closer to her.

Recoiling in shock, Naruto leaned his back against the railing, his arms supporting him. He turned his head away from her, and took a second to gather his composure.

His breathing was laboured and his left hand kept twitching. He needed a second to get his head set straight again.

Just what the hell was wrong with him, why couldn't he think straight. God, he hadn't reacted to a girl like this since he was 12!

Glancing over at her again, Naruto caught her gaze. A small smirk paired with narrow red eyes that looked absolutely malicious marred her face for but a moment, before relaxing into something a bit more peaceful.

Naruto couldn't help but narrow his eyes slightly in return.

Now that he could think properly, his mind quickly came to a couple different conclusions.

"I'm guessing you want some answers, follow me." She ordered, turning around and leading the way inside of a sliding screen door.

He was right, she had a great ass.

* * *

He just couldn't figure her out.

They talked for hours on end, and throughout the entire discussion he couldn't get a read on her.

She was toying with him, and he didn't appreciate it one bit.

An incredibly cunning, manipulative, and logical woman; perhaps demon was a better word.

She seemed cordial at times, but at most she seemed to find some strange entertainment in goading him. Constantly trying to get a rise out of him, she resorted to petty insults and other tactics.

He probably wasn't helping with that matter though, keeping his face indifferent and refusing to rise to the bait more than likely.

"Look before I go, mind answering a question for me."

Her legs uncrossed and the playful smirk widened. Leaning forward on her throne and crossing her hands together, she narrowed her eyes even further.

"Ask away." Her voice beckoned.

"Why did you do it."

Fortunately for him, she actually got straight to answering rather than her little game of dodge and divert, or acting ditzy and putting him through a wide array of personas, searching for the best one to annoy him like she had the past several hours.

"Ah, you wonder why I did what I did 15 odd years ago." She said in that sultry voice of hers, the kind that should probably be listed as a form of mind control.

Curling up in her seat and tucking her legs behind her, Naruto tried not to get caught up in her mind games but found it difficult.

The way she purposely flaunted her assets, the sexy poses, the facial expressions. All of it was with intent to garner his attention.

He hated it, but he also couldn't help but appreciate the eye candy.

"Hmm," She had closed her eyes almost as in thought, before opening them and smirking in what could pass off as cruel, but on her face appeared sexy. "I don't feel like telling you."

That finally set him off, not even he could stay calm after this fruitless conversation.

Dark blue chakra burst forth and surrounded him in a veil, flickering erratically and casting long shadows across the walls. Piercing her with a glare, Naruto actually snarled at the woman, sounding exactly like a wolf. The room becoming suffocating under the pressure of his intent.

She suddenly stood up and let her own chakra flair out, A disgustingly dark crimson that cast her own unique shadows upon the wall behind her. Nine tails total flowed from her back, shifting in an almost aggressive manner.

Eyes narrowed like his own, she smiled at him, one that only enhanced the crimson slit eyes she possessed.

"You do assume me so."

* * *

Anko took a step outside when her phone rang, all too happy to leave the room.

Whatever happened to the kid while they fought the specter must've messed him up quite a bit. He had been in a bad mood since.

Luckily enough Tama was there to comfort the boy, and even though she looked much older and mature, she still resorted to old habits.

Through the sliding glass door, she could see Tama resting her head in the boys lap; Naruto stroking her waist length hair gently.

Enough of that though.

"Hello."

"Anko it's me."

"Oh, Hey Hiruzen." She responded amicably, completely throwing away all protocol when it came to speaking with the chief. "What's up."

A long sigh was heard over the line.

"From what you've told me so far things don't look too good on Naruto's end."

"Yeah, not so much." She answered, her smile falling and relaxing into a more serious expression. "He's doing the best he can under the circumstances, but I don't see him making too much of the situation living under the Shimazu girl. They don't get along well enough for that, not to mention she's not very strong or mature, I don't see him growing too strong underneath her lead."

"Although he has had a bit of success during his fights with the specters." Anko added.

"I heard." He replied gruffly. "Lightning Manipulation that runs more potent than it does within most of our mercenaries with such an affinity, as well as that mysterious True Name power he holds."

"His future looks promising, but only if he can cement himself with someone of a higher position, someone with more resources." Anko said with a little frustration on her end.

She was well aware of his situation, and she did not want to see her little brother die because he was being held back from reaching his own potential.

"I had been thinking on the same lines."

Anko knew that Hiruzen felt just as bad if not worse, after all he had known that boy longest, Naruto was just as much a grandson to him as Konohamaru was.

"I had the intelligence network look more into The Shimazu family," Anko heard him pause, and assumed he had taken a puff of that pipe he held so fondly. "We found a better candidate."

"Oh, really?" She responded, looking back through the glass door and watching the boy who had gotten up and began to prepare dinner.

"Yeah, turns out the little blonde isn't the only one being considered for the seat. Her cousin Suseri is also a candidate, and seems to have the support of the clan itself. She's apparently much stronger I hear."

"Of course, it'll be up to Naruto to decide which path he takes." Hiruzen ended.

"I'm sure he'll make the smart decision."

"As do I, that boy has been taught well." Another pause. "I have made arrangements already, she will show of her own accord soon enough."

"I don't know exactly what she's planning, but she seems to have some interest in the boy. The sheer level of chakra the boy holds caught her attention the most."

"I got it."

"Good, stay safe."

Anko hung up, and entered the house once more.

* * *

I'm not too proud of this chapter, but i really needed to get it out there instead of just sitting on my computer. future chapters won't be this bad, promise.

I should also start updating more frequently, something like once a week uploads.


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